[cincymom1]

I live in Cincinnati OH (specifically in the Pleasant Ridge area). Since my son was born I have had family members watch my son while at work. It has become increasingly difficult to find a family member who is able to watch him while I am away. I would like any recommendations anyone may have for day care services in Cincinnati. I am not sure how to find out which ones are good and which are bad. I need more structure and routine in our schedule than we have now and being able to know where and when he is going every week will relieve a great deal of stress and time that I currently spend trying to organize all the different family members for the different days and times. Any help would be great, thank you!:confused:

[DoulaLC]

Ohio Licensing Standards for Day Care Centers - Daycare.com

Check with the licensing agency on what centers are currently operating in your area. You can find out what sort of violations they have been written up for and how quickly they were sorted out. Pay visits to your top choices... if possible during the hours that parents may be dropping off or picking up their children. This will allow you to ask parents currently using the center for their opinions on staff, turn over rate, communication between home and center, concerns, etc..
Once you do have a center in mind, pay a couple of visits and stay awhile to get a good picture of what goes on. How do the staff approach the children, how are conflicts between children handled, how are children's needs met, what activities are the children participating in, do they seem engaged in what they are doing, are routines/schedules posted and followed, etc. Once your child is enrolled and attending... for your own peace of mind, stop in once in awhile at a different time from your norm and check out how things are going and how your child seems to be doing.
Just a start on some things to consider and look for... :)